WICHITA, Kan. – A British firm that bought a Boeing Co. plant in St. Louis three years ago is interested in purchasing Boeing’s commercial airplane operation in Wichita, a spokesman for the British aerospace company said.
GKN PLC has not made a bid for Boeing Wichita’s commercial airplane facility, but the expression of interest marks a change from May, when GKN said it would not pursue a deal.
“Things have moved on since then,” GKN spokesman Peter Baillie told The Wichita Eagle for a story in Saturday’s editions. “I can confirm that we are looking again at the Wichita outsourcing.”
Baillie said GKN officials “value our relationship with Boeing, and we would like to deepen our relationship with Boeing.” However, he added, “we would only consider this action if it was in the best interest of GKN and the best interest of our shareholders.”
Chicago-based Boeing wants to sell Boeing Wichita along with its commercial operations in Wichita, Tulsa and McAlester, Okla., as it follows a strategy to focus on design and final assembly.
About 7,000 people work in the commercial airplane operation of the Boeing plant in Wichita, which also has about 5,000 in its military airplane operation.
Boeing Wichita spokesman Fred Solis confirmed Friday that the company is talking with “various parties who have expressed interest.” Solis declined to comment further, saying Boeing has privacy agreements with the parties.
Boeing hopes to have an announcement “whether to pursue selling the commercial site here” by the end of the year, Solis said. The company has not disclosed a possible asking price.
When GKN bought Boeing’s St. Louis-based fabrications business in 2001, it hired a majority of its workers and has since moved manufacturing technology there. The St. Louis plant makes parts for military and commercial projects.
“That’s been a successful experience for both of us,” Baillie said of the purchase in St. Louis. “We would like to broaden our involvement in civil aerospace.”
The Eagle said industry experts consider Boeing’s commercial operation in Wichita a good fit with GKN’s goal to become a leading aerospace supplier of metal and composite structures.
Some also have said a deal with GKN versus another aerospace supplier might be better received by Boeing’s largest union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.
Meanwhile, a group of employees at Boeing’s Wichita plant is working to form an employee stock ownership plan in a grass-roots effort to buy the operations.
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